Other Dandy Blogs

“Can a Christian lose his or her salvation?” This is a question which I receive on a fairly regular basis. It is a question which I myself struggled with early in my Christian life. It is certainly an important question and there is a lot of division on how best to answer it. My short answer is: No. A true Christian cannot lose his or her salvation. But why is there so much confusion about this issue and what does the Bible say?

Troubling Warning Passages

I think one of the reasons for the confusion is the presence of so many warning passages in the New Testament which warn against apostasy, or falling away. The presence of these passages implies that it is possible to fall away from the faith. Why else would they exist?

Colossians 1:21-23 tells us that Christ reconciled us “in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him, if indeed you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel.”

Jesus himself said, “The one who endures to the end will be saved” Mark 13:13. He also said, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples.’” John 8:31.

The writer of Hebrews warns us to strive for holiness “without which no one will see the Lord.” (Heb. 12:14).

Many other such passages could be cited which warn the hearer against falling away from Christ.

Those Who Fall Away Are Not Genuine Believers

Scripture speaks frequently of those who profess faith in Christ, but are not genuine believers. Jesus said that many would call him Lord at the judgment, but would be turned away (Matthew 7:21-23. In the parable of the sower, Jesus addresses those who fall away:

“As for what was sown on rocky ground, this is the one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy, yet he has no root in himself, but endures for a while, and when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately he falls away.” Matthew 13:20-21

John states the matter clearly when writing of those who had left the right way for another form of religion: 1 John 2:19 says, “They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us. But they went out, that it might become plain that they all are not of us.”

Scripture clearly provides the category of a “false believer” and warns believers to make our calling and election sure (2 Peter 1:10). This quote has been attributed to several different individuals but sums the matter up well: “A faith that fizzles before the finish was faulty from the first.”

Salvation Belongs to the Lord

I fear that we have too often over-emphasized the human response in salvation and under-emphasized God’s initiative in salvation. It is true that we must repent and believe the gospel. It is equally true that we must be born of the Spirit (John 3:3) – this is something that God must do.

Peter tells us that God “has caused us to be born again to a living hope” (1 Peter 1:3). Our new birth was not brought about by our will, for we were not born by “the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.” (John 1:13). Peter continues talking about the new birth and says that we are now “kept by the power of God,” literally we are “being guarded by God’s power” (1 Peter 1:5).

Furthermore, our salvation is rooted in God’s gracious choice. Romans 8:30: “Those whom he predestined he also called; and those whom he called he also justified; and those whom he justified he also glorified.” Notice that all those who end up at glorification are those who were predestined. No one falls off along the way. Ephesians 1:3-14 beautifully lays out our election and the fact that we are “sealed by the Spirit.” It is impossible for someone chosen by God before the foundation of the world to be in danger of losing salvation.

Jesus says that his sheep “will never perish and no one will snatch them out of [his] hand” (John 10:27). He also says that when the Holy Spirit comes, he will be with us forever (John 14:16). Some other passages which speak of God assuring our salvation include:

Jeremiah 32:40 I will make with them an everlasting covenant, that I will not turn away from doing good to them. And I will put the fear of me in their hearts, that they may not turn from me.

Jude 24-25 Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy, to the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen.

1 Thessalonians 5:23-24 May the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it.

Philippians 1:6 And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.

1 Corinthians 1:8-9 [Jesus Christ] will sustain you to the end; guiltless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

Isaiah 46:3-4 (ESV) “Listen to me, O house of Jacob, all the remnant of the house of Israel, who have been borne by me from before your birth, carried from the womb; even to your old age I am he, and to gray hairs I will carry you. I have made, and I will bear; I will carry and will save.

Psalm 37:28 For the LORD loves justice; he will not forsake his saints. They are preserved forever, but the children of the wicked shall be cut off.

Notice in all these passages who it is that is responsible for our salvation. God ensures our sanctification, perseverance, and endurance. He chose us, He called us, He caused us to be born again, He justified us, He sanctifies us, He sustains us, He preserves us, and He will glorify us at the day of Jesus Christ.

Katrina and I have just returned from the 2019 Annual Meeting of the Southern Baptist Convention in Birmingham, Alabama. Part worship service, part business meeting, part family reunion – there’s nothing like it when our denomination of churches gather together annually to do the work of the kingdom!

The theme for the meeting this year was “Gospel Above All.” I left the meeting this year greatly encouraged. Several members of our church family have asked me about the meeting, so I thought I would share some of the highlights of the meeting.

THE PASTOR’S CONFERENCE

The annual meeting always begins with the Pastor’s Conference – a two day marathon of worship, preaching, and teaching. This year, the conference was devoted to the Beatitudes in Matthew 5:2-16 with each speaker preaching a sermon from one of the beatitudes. All of the speakers were great, but the highlight for me was Andrew Brunson’s testimony and sermon based on Matthew 5:12, “Blessed are the persecuted.” Andrew Brunson was imprisoned in Turkey where he had served as a pastor. He was imprisoned for two years until his release in October 2018. Following his sermon, he joined his wife Norine along with Nik and Ruth Ripken, and Jack Phillips – the Colorado cake shop owner who faced numerous lawsuits because of his Christian convictions concerning marriage.

This past year has been a year of transition for our convention. Five of our SBC entities have been in the process of searching for new leadership. Four of those positions have been filled and we were able to hear from these new leaders during the meeting.

The Executive Committee hired Ronnie Floyd, former pastor of Cross Church in Northwest Arkansas, as its president and CEO. The executive committee carries out the work of the SBC throughout the year.

The International Mission Board hired Paul Chitwood as president. The IMB oversees all of our international missionaries. Dr. Chitwood formerly led the Kentucky Baptist Convention and I came to know him well during my time as a Director of Missions in Kentucky.

Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, TX called Adam Greenway as president. Dr. Greenway formerly served as the Dean of the Billy Graham School of Missions and Evangelism at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, KY. I came to know him well during my time in Louisville.

New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary called Jamie Dew as president. Dr. Dew formerly served as a vice president at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Wake Forest, NC. During the report from New Orleans, the former president Dr. Chuck Kelley spoke and introduced Dr. Dew as the new president.

Lifeway Christian Resources is still searching for a new president following the retirement of Dr. Thom Rainer.

THE PRESIDENT’S ADDRESS

JD Greear, pastor of The Summit Church in Durham, NC, was our SBC president this year. He has done a great job leading our convention to take action against sexual abuse in our churches. He delivered a great address as president expounding on the theme of the meeting, “Gospel Above All.” Greear was elected to a second term as SBC president. SBC presidents may serve up to two consecutive terms as president. He was unopposed.

IMB PRESENTATION

Paul Chitwood delivered his first presentation as president of the International Mission Board since his election last year. He is doing a phenomenal job. This year, we held a commissioning ceremony for 26 new Southern Baptist missionaries! This was the most exciting portion of the meeting and represents why we cooperate together. Many of these missionaries could not disclose their identities because they are going to difficult and dangerous places.

Additionally, the IMB is sponsoring the translation of the New Testament into the language of a Southeast Asian people group. They were asking attendees to sponsor the translation of a verse or verses. I was able to financially sponsor Matthew 7:8-12. By the end of the meeting, the entire project had been funded! The New Testament will be made available for the first time for this people group!

CONSTITUTION AND BYLAW AMENDMENTS

Perhaps the most important changes made were two key amendments to our constitution and bylaws addressing sexual abuse and racial discrimination. A church will not be considered a cooperating SBC church if it acts “in a manner inconsistent with the Convention’s beliefs regarding sexual abuse,” or acts to “affirm, approve, or endorse discriminatory behavior on the basis of ethnicity.” These are important changes which are necessary to maintain the integrity of our convention.

In light of recent awareness of sexual abuse among Southern Baptist churches, SBC President JD Greear commissioned a team to research this problem and propose solutions. The report was made available during the annual meeting. You can read the full report here:

What did Jesus? The first words of Jesus preached are “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matthew 4:17). These are the exact words of John the Baptizer in 3:2. This is also the message of the Old Testament prophets who called Israel to return to God’s commandments.

Jeremiah 26:13 (ESV)
Now therefore mend your ways and your deeds, and obey the voice of the LORD your God, and the LORD will relent of the disaster that he has pronounced against you.

Mark characterizes Jesus’ message as “the gospel of God” and joins repentance with believing the gospel.

Mark 1:14-15 (ESV) 14 Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the gospel of God, 15 and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.”

The Greek word for repent is metanoeite, it is an imperative verb – a command, and a second person plural verb – all y’all repent.

Repentance is necessary for salvation

Luke 13:3 (ESV) No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.

Why repent? The kingdom of heaven is at hand.

The word for “at hand” is in the perfect tense, which means that it has fully come, not that it is coming. It is now here. We leave in the parentheses between kingdom inaugurated and kingdom consummated. Kingdom initiated, and kingdom actualized. Already and not-yet.

The kingdom of heaven brings both blessing and judgment

Matthew 13:24-30 (ESV) 24 He put another parable before them, saying, “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field,25 but while his men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat and went away.26 So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared also.27 And the servants of the master of the house came and said to him, ‘Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have weeds?’28 He said to them, ‘An enemy has done this.’ So the servants said to him, ‘Then do you want us to go and gather them?’29 But he said, ‘No, lest in gathering the weeds you root up the wheat along with them.30 Let both grow together until the harvest, and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, Gather the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn.’”

At the beginning of Jesus’ ministry, Matthew quotes Isaiah 9:1-2 as a prophecy about Jesus ministry in Galilee.

Matthew 4:12-17 12 Now when he heard that John had been arrested, he withdrew into Galilee.13 And leaving Nazareth he went and lived in Capernaum by the sea, in the territory of Zebulun and Naphtali, 14 so that what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled:

15 “The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles— 16 the people dwelling in darkness have seen a great light, and for those dwelling in the region and shadow of death, on them a light has dawned.”

This passage referred to the Hebrew exiles who would return after the Assyrian and Babylonian deportations. God promises to dispel the gloom and anguish and to shine His light on His people once again. “The way of the sea” refers to the major road from Damascus to the Mediterranean Sea which passed through Capernaum on the west side of Lake Galilee. This is the route by which the exiles would return and thus the way would be made glorious. Matthew applies this passage to the coming of Jesus who brings light to those in darkness in this region.

The passage cited by Matthew is followed in the same paragraph in Isaiah by the prophecy of the child who will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting, Father, Prince of Peace. This clearly sets the passage in a Messianic context.

Foreshadows Gentile mission

Galilee had a mixed population of both Jews and Gentiles. Gentiles had occupied Galilee from the time of the Assyrian conquest and deportation in 722 BC. Isaiah would know Galilee as a territory associated with non-Jewish peoples in his day. The mention of Galilee of the Gentiles foreshadows the Great Commission to evangelize all nations which is given on a mountain in Galilee.

Matthew 28:16-20 (ESV) 16 Now the eleven disciples went toGalilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. 17 And when they saw him they worshiped him, but some doubted. 18 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

In Isaiah 9:1-2, God promises light to the returning exiles. However, Jesus is the true light and comes to shine on those who dwell in darkness and the region of death’s shadow.

Christ comes to shine light on those living under the shadow of death. Jew and Gentile both dwell under the shadow of death and are under the curse. Death looms over us as our inevitable destroyer. But Jesus comes and dispels the shadow of death by the life-giving light of the gospel.

John 1:4-13 (ESV) 4 In him was life, and the life was the light of men. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.9 The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world. 10 He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. 11 He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. 12 But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, 13 who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.

Jesus fulfills the eternal plan of God by dispelling spiritual darkness in all the earth.

“That is why bad people, in one sense, know very little about badness. They have lived a sheltered life by always giving in. We never find out the strength of the evil impulse inside us until we try to fight it: and Christ, because He was the only man who never yielded to temptation, is also the only man who knows to the full what temptation means—the only complete realist (p. 142).” Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis

Christ’s temptation is an example for us that we should follow in his steps when tempted. Christ was tempted in every respect as we are, yet without sin.

Satan attempts to have Jesus satisfy the “lust of the flesh” in the form of the most basic and seemingly harmless of human needs. Jesus is hungry, and Satan tempts him to turn stones into bread to satisfy his hunger. To use his divine power in response to a prodding of Satan, however, would be an act of sin. Jesus will later multiply loaves for others (14.13-21; 15.29-39), but he will not for himself. Temptation often offers itself as an illegitimate or premature fulfillment of a legitimate need.

Sin will keep you from the Bible or the Bible will keep you from sin.Jesus quotes Deuteronomy 8:3 in response to Satan. Jesus’ response models the verse he quotes, as he chooses to live in light of God’s word rather than satisfy his hunger. Jesus finds the truth of God’s word sufficient to sustain him and to triumph in temptation.

Psalm 119:11 (ESV) I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you.

Wherever the precise point is located, Satan tells Jesus to leap from the temple and allow angels to rescue him (It is fitting that Jesus is ministered to by angels in verse 11). As before, Satan presents this as a suitable action for the “Son of God.” Satan quotes Psalm 91:11-12 to prove his point (the fact that Satan can quote Scripture is a terrifying thought!). Scripture misinterpreted is the work of Satan (prosperity gospel). This would be an appeal to the “pride of life” as Satan is tempting Jesus to vindicate himself.

Jesus quotes Deuteronomy 6:16 which refers to Israel’s unbelief at Rephidim when Moses struck the rock which brought forth water. Jesus doesn’t need to be validated or for his Father to prove anything.

Satan tempts Jesus with the kingdoms of the world and their glory. This is ironic because these kingdoms will ultimately belong to Jesus when his kingdom is fully realized (Rev. 11:15). The glory of kingdoms reeks of human ambition, worldly pride, and approval of the masses. Satan provides a shortcut to an inferior inheritance which would forfeit “the sufferings of Christ and the subsequent glories” (1 Pet. 1:11)

Revelation 11:15 (ESV) 15 Then the seventh angel blew his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, saying, “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he shall reign forever and ever.”

Jesus responds, commanding Satan to depart from him. Satan’s temptation to violate the first commandment is unthinkable to Jesus. Jesus quotes Deuteronomy 6:13 after emphatically rebuking Satan and commanding him to leave him. Just like the first temptation in Eden, every temptation is a challenge of God’s Lordship and an attempt to rob Him of the worship due Him.

After remaining sinless through this temptation, it is evident that Jesus is greater than Adam. After being served by angels, it is evident that he is greater than angels. Even the ministry of angels vindicates Jesus’ identity as the Son of God.

Hebrews 4:15 (ESV) For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin.

Follow Jesus example in order to overcome temptation.

1 John 2:15-17 (ESV) Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world. 17 And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.

Matthew 3:13-17 describes the the baptism of Jesus by John the Baptizer.

John the Baptizer was of priestly descent. His father, Zacharias was a priest and his mother, Elisabeth, was of the daughters of Aaron (Luke 1:5). John served as a forerunner to Jesus and his mission was the subject of Old Testament prophecy (Isa. 40:3; Mal. 3:1). John was born six months before Jesus and his birth was foretold by an angel.

Approximately 30 years between this passage and the last mention of Jesus (2:23). Jesus has remained in Nazareth until the proper time when he should be revealed to Israel. Luke’s temple episode is the only account which breaks the thirty-year silence from Jesus’ birth to his baptism (Luke 2:41-52).

John is taken aback by Jesus’ request to be baptized by John. John realizes that Jesus is superior to himself. Jesus does not need to be baptized for repentance, however, John does need to be baptized with the Holy Spirit and fire.

Matthew 3:11 (ESV) “I baptize you with water for repentance, but he who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.

John recognized Jesus supremacy and that Jesus’ baptism was higher and great than his. Like John, we must recognize Jesus as God’s Son and confess our need to submit to him. We need the transforming power of the Holy Spirit and the cleansing available to us through Jesus.

Jesus had no sin and had no reason to be baptized for the purpose of repentance from sin. This is clear by John’s response, the Father’s testimony, and Jesus’ victory over Satan’s temptation in 4:1-11. The purpose of the temptation is to show that Jesus is without sin. However, Jesus chose to submit to baptism to “fulfill all righteousness.” Jesus’ baptism was unique and unlike any other.

Jesus submitted to incarnation, birth, infancy, parents, Scriptures, Law, God, and to John’s baptism. John’s baptism was the latest stage in God’s redemptive plan. Just as Jesus was subject to circumcision, participation in the temple; he was subject to this latest God-given rite of obedience.

Jesus was baptized in order to obey God

Jesus was baptized in order to be revealed to Israel

Jesus was baptized in order to receive glory from the Father

Romans 5:19 (ESV) For as by the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man’s obedience the many will be made righteous.

Although Jesus submitted to baptism out of obedience to God, he had no sin which required repentance. We must trust the perfect righteousness of Jesus as the only basis for our forgiveness of sins and justification before God.

The Transfiguration is a parallel account to the baptism of Jesus: the Father speaks from heaven, Jesus is seen in his glory, he appears with Moses and Elijah (17:1-13).

Matthew 17:5 (ESV) He was still speaking when, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him.”

Jesus has been shown to be the son of Abraham, the son of David, the son of Joseph, and now is publicly shown to be the Son of God.

The Trinity is represented at Jesus’ baptism. The Father speaks from heaven, the Son is baptized on earth, and the Spirit descends from heaven. This divine witness testifies to Jesus’ true identity as Son of God and his sinlessness.

Matthew 28:19 (ESV) Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,

John’s ministry was one of preparing for the coming of God (Isa. 40:1-3; Matt. 3:3). John has prepared the way for Jesus, who is God incarnate.

Every New Testament church is tasked with reaching others for Christ, especially those in their own communities. The easiest place to begin is with those who choose to visit our churches on Sunday morning. Churches should extend intentional hospitality to first-time guests. Here are some proven pointers to help with hospitality.

Have greeters placed at the door. Have other people who can escort the guests to their seat and serve as a first contact for them. Exchange first names immediately.

Have a guest card for guests to complete and place in the offering plate. Include a space for their prayer requests. Have people in the church commit to praying for these requests and let your guests know this.

Send a follow-up letter on Monday. Send this in addition to any emails or phone calls you might make as well. If you really want to step up your game, pastors, send a brief, hand-written card to each guest.

Put together a gift bag with some goodies and info about the church, ministries, church calendar, “what we teach” statement.

Compromise Missionary Baptist Church, Erie TN. This is the church where I was saved, baptized, licensed to preach, and ordained. Photo Credit: Flossie Umphrey (mom).

After preaching the morning service at Briggs Road Baptist Church, I spent the rest of New Year’s Eve 2017 at home, fighting a cold, finishing the last paper of my first Ph.D seminar. It wasn’t until after a night’s rest and conversing with my dad about the annual New Year’s Eve service at my home church where I grew up, that Katrina pointed out that this day was a significant milestone. It was around 1:00am on New Year’s Day 1998, at the close of a New Year’s Eve service that I told my home church that God was calling me into the ministry. I was fifteen years old. At that same hour this year, I was crashing and decompressing from the mental and physical exertion of working while sick. The significance of this moment was the furthest thing from my mind. Suddenly, the weight of this important anniversary hit me like a ton of bricks and my brain began to process several realities and reflections. Here are some reflections from my twenty-year milestone.

At first, I groaned because – 20 years. It seems like forever ago, and like yesterday at the same time. I used to think only old people talked about things from twenty years ago. I spent so much time being characterized as “the young preacher” or the “preacher boy” but 20 years has a way of doing away with those youthful qualifiers. I used to hate them. Now I kind of miss them. Nevertheless, I will not say “the former days were better than these” for this is not from wisdom.

I then asked myself, “Have I made the best use of these 20 years?” God has blessed me to achieve many significant and meaningful goals and to see many victories in these early years, but as our minds often do, my mind wandered to my failures and shortcomings as a preacher and pastor. I then thought of personal aspirations that I have yet to reach, some of which are completely outside my control. These thoughts drove me to begin setting new goals and to make others matters an intentional focus of prayer.

A third reflection is a sobering one. In these twenty years, I have seen many other brothers who have begun this same journey, yet whose ministries have been cut short by moral failure and disqualification. Others have simply fallen away from the faith and walked away from ministry. Most notable is the minister who was preaching at the service twenty years ago when I surrendered to the call of ministry. A pastor, an evangelist, and an expositor, he was an early example of rigorous study and introduced me to one of my preaching heroes, Charles Haddon Spurgeon. I will never forget the day a few years ago, when he arrived at my house with a large box of preaching and Bible study books. What I thought was simply a purge from his library and a generous gift to mine, was in fact, his farewell to ministry, the faith, and his family. Few things have devastated me as much as watching his shipwreck of faith. Not many days pass when I am not frighteningly aware that my own unchecked depravity could end my ministry in ruin and shame. May God give me the grace to run well that I may avoid the tragedy that “after preaching to others, I myself should be disqualified.”

My reflections end in thankfulness to God that over half of my life has been dedicated to the ministry of preaching the Word of God. I don’t say this out of Pharisaical sanctimony, but rather in praise toward God for appointing me for His service. When I realized that this milestone had passed without my attention until hours later, I was upset with myself for not anticipating it and marking its significance. I had, in fact, preached the Christmas Eve service last week in the very church where I announced my call to ministry without so much as a mention of the significance of the occasion. After some reflection, however, I thanked God that twenty years later, at the exact moment of the the commencement of my preaching ministry, I was wrung out to the point of physical and mental exhaustion from a full day of preaching, writing, and studying so that the precious memory of the past was unobserved, being buried under the labors of the present. May this milestone be an opportunity of reinvigoration from God for the miles which lay ahead. “Here I raise my Ebenezer, hither by thy help I’ve come.”

In May 2017, God placed Katrina and myself at Briggs Road Baptist Church in Columbus where I serve as Senior Pastor. We are thankful to God for the course He has charted for us. He is faithful!

I was called to Briggs Road the Sunday after graduating with my Master of Divinity from The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in May 2017. I am now working toward a PhD in Christian Preaching through Southern Seminary.

We are excited about the future of Briggs Road Baptist Church! We are in the midst of a period of church revitalization and missional renewal. We have recently sponsored a new church plant which is meeting in our facility, Zomi Baptist Mission Church which is comprised of believers from Myanmar. There is great work left to be done in our city. Columbus is designated by the North American Mission Board as a “Send City” which is a target city for missions activity. Columbus is the largest city in Ohio and the 15th largest in the US, with over 2 million people in metro Columbus, only 12 percent of whom are affiliated with an evangelical church.

Will you pray for us as we seek to make Christ known to the nations beginning in Columbus, OH?

Galatians 2:20 I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

There is great value in affirming biblical inspiration even though the original documents do not exist today. By affirming that the original text is inspired, the believer acknowledges that God’s original revelation is perfect and inspired, despite the variations of men that may be found among the extant manuscripts. Furthermore, the believer is motivated by the assertion of inspiration to discover the original words of Scripture and to trust what God has revealed in them. This is a reasonable undertaking since we do not need the physical autographs to ascertain the original words but we do have more than adequate manuscript evidence and a proven methodology which can ascertain the original text.

While some have despaired because the original documents of Scripture are not extant today, this concern is unfounded. It is not necessary to possess the physical originals to know the original text of Scripture. God did not inspire the physical materials used to transmit His words, He inspired the words themselves. There is nothing about the original papyrus or ink which is necessary to having certainty of the words of Scripture, it must simply be demonstrated that we have access to the same words faithfully copied and preserved.

When considering the modern situation in which believers are reliant on translations from copied manuscripts, it is helpful to consider the situation of Jesus and the apostles themselves. Neither Jesus nor his apostles had access to the original Hebrew manuscripts of the Old Testament. In fact, the Old Testament commonly used in their day was the Greek translation of the Old Testament, the Septuagint. Yet, not only did Jesus and the apostles freely use the Septuagint, they freely and unreservedly quoted from it and regarded the Septuagint itself as Scripture. In fact, the majority of Old Testament quotations found in the New Testament come from the Septuagint.[1] The fact that Jesus and the New Testament authors regarded the copies and translations of the Old Testament available to them as Scripture, should give the believer assurance that God has likewise preserved His Word for modern readers.

God has providentially allowed believers today to possess an embarrassment of riches where manuscript evidence of the New Testament is concerned. Today there are approximately 5,700 Greek manuscripts of the New Testament available today.[2] This is in addition to the thousands of witnesses among the ancient versions in Syriac, Latin, Coptic, and other languages and to the quotations from the Patristic writings.[3] Among the papyrus evidence are some manuscripts which date to the second century A.D.[4]

The modern reading of the Old Testament is likewise dependent on extant manuscript evidence. The Dead Sea Scrolls were a major discovery in 1947 which greatly bolstered the manuscript evidence for the Old Testament. Prior to their discovery, the Old Testament text was dependent upon the Samaritan Pentateuch, the Septuagint, the Leningrad Codex, the Aleppo Codex and the Nash Papyrus. The Dead Sea Scrolls were comprised of approximately 800 manuscripts dating from around 250 B.C to 50 A.D.[5] Believers have great reason to place confidence in the manuscript evidence available today.

While there are variations within the manuscripts currently extant, the original text of both the Old and New Testaments may be ascertained with staggering certainty when the process of textual criticism has been applied to the manuscript evidence. Textual criticism involves evaluating the various readings in light of the quality and age of the manuscripts, the widespread presence of the reading, the context of the passage and the style and vocabulary of the writer, and other factors. By critically evaluating the texts in this way, the original reading of the text may be asserted with confidence. Wayne Grudem effectively summarizes the confidence which believers can have in their Bible:

“For most practical purposes, then, the current published scholarly texts of the Hebrew Old Testament and Greek New Testament are the same as the original manuscripts… Thus, our present manuscripts are for most purposes the same as the original manuscripts, and the doctrine of inerrancy therefore directly concerns our present manuscripts as well.”[6]

Grudem further asserts the reliability of the modern text of the Bible, “…it may first be stated that for over 99 percent of the words of the Bible, we know what the original manuscript said.”[7]The Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy was drafted in 1978 and stands for many evangelicals as a full and faithful statement on the inerrancy of Scripture. The absence of the autographs does not affect inerrancy according to the Chicago Statement:

“Article X: We affirm that inspiration, strictly speaking, applies to the autographic text of Scripture, which in the providence of God can be ascertained from available manuscripts with great accuracy. We further affirm that copies and translations of Scripture are the Word of God to the extent that they faithfully represent the original. We deny that any essential element of the Christian faith is affected by the absence of the autographs. We further deny that this absence renders the assertion of Biblical inerrancy invalid or irrelevant.”[8]

Even Bart Ehrman, who denies the inspiration of the Bible, recognizes that the vast majority of textual variants do not seriously alter the text,

“To be sure, of all the hundreds of thousands of textual changes found among our manuscripts, most of them are completely insignificant, immaterial, and of no real importance for anything other than showing that scribes could not spell or keep focused any better than the rest of us.”[9]

There is much value in affirming inspiration and there is great reason for doing so even though the autographs of Scripture do not survive to this day. While the physical materials are not extant, the content of those autographs do survive in the great manuscript evidence that God has providentially preserved for us. While there are variants among the manuscripts, these are mistakes of men, not of God. We may affirm that the original documents remain the Word of God, and through the work of textual criticism, we may confidently arrive at the text of the original documents. Inasmuch as the original text has been recovered, we may therefore, regard those texts as inspired and wherever questions remain, our affirmation of divine inspiration should motivate us to deduce the original reading through examination of the manuscripts.

[2] Metzger, Bruce M. The Text of the New Testament: Its Transmission, Corruption, and Restoration. New York: Oxford University Press, 2005, 52.

[3] The patristic quotations are so thorough that Metzger states, “Indeed, so extensive are these citations that if all other sources for our knowledge of the text of the New Testament were destroyed, they would be sufficient alone for the reconstruction of practically the entire New Testament.” Ibid, 2005, 126.

[4] 𝔓4, 𝔓64, 𝔓67, and 𝔓75 date to the late 2nd century, while 𝔓52 dates to the early 2nd century. Metzger Ibid., 53-61.